- Early life and family
- Career in New Zealand
- Death
- List of projects
- Commemoration
- Notes and references Notes References
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2018}}{{Use British English|date=February 2018}}{{Infobox person
| honorific_prefix =
| name = James Balfour
| honorific_suffix =
| image =
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| native_name =
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| nationality = Scottish
| birth_date = 2 June 1831
| birth_place = Colinton near Edinburgh, Scotland
| death_date = {{death date and age |1869|12|19 |1831|06|02 |df=yes}}
| death_place = Timaru Harbour
| resting_place =
| resting_place_coordinates =
| education =
| spouse = Christina Simson
| relatives = James Balfour (great-grandfather)
Robert Whytt (great-grandfather)
George William Balfour (brother)
| module = {{ infobox engineering career
| discipline =
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| practice_name =
| employer = Otago Province
| significant_projects = Dog Island Lighthouse
| significant_design =
| significant_advance =
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}}
| signature =
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}}James Melville Balfour (2 June 1831 – 19 December 1869) was a Scottish-born New Zealand marine engineer. He is best remembered for the network of lighthouses that he designed. Balfour was a highly energetic man, who despite drowning after only six years in the country, has left an impressive list of projects either designed or constructed by him. He was initially employed by the Otago Provincial Council before his appointment by the Government of New Zealand as the colonial marine engineer. Early life and family Balfour was born in the manse of Colinton Parish Church south-west of Edinburgh, Scotland on 2 June 1831.{{sfn|Grace's Guide: Balfour}} He was the youngest son of Rev. Lewis Balfour (1777–1860), D.D., who for 37 years was minister for the Colinton parish.{{sfn|Grace's Guide: Balfour}} The philosopher James Balfour was his father's paternal grandfather, and the physician Robert Whytt was his father's maternal grandfather. His father had married Anne Mackintosh on 24 February 1806. Among his siblings were the physician and heart specialist George William Balfour (1823–1903), and Margaret Isabella "Maggie" Balfour (1829–1897) who in 1848 married the lighthouse builder Thomas Stevenson.{{sfn|The Star obituary|1869|p=3}} He received his education at Edinburgh High School{{sfn|Scholefield|1940|p=32}} and the University of Edinburgh.{{sfn|Grace's Guide: Balfour}} He studied civil engineering and for his training, he attended workshops in Scotland and, to study optics, in Germany.{{sfn|Aspden}} He did an apprenticeship with famous lighthouse builders, the brothers Thomas and David Stevenson, David being his sister's husband, and he worked in the lighthouse department of the firm.{{sfn|Grace's Guide: Balfour}}{{sfn|Beaglehole|2013}}{{sfn|Lee|1912}} Balfour married Christina Simson and their only child, Marie Clothilde Balfour, was born in 1862.{{sfn|James – Telling History}} She married her first cousin James Craig Balfour, the son of Balfour's brother George.{{sfn|James – Telling History}} Career in New Zealand The Balfour family arrived in Port Chalmers on board the Sir Ralph Abercromby on 14 September 1863.{{sfn|Port Chalmers|1863|p=4}}{{sfn|Whitehouse}} Both Balfour and his friend and colleague, Thomas Paterson, had accepted appointments by the Otago Provincial Council for engineering positions. Balfour came as a marine engineer, while Paterson was a bridge, railway and road engineer.{{sfn|Grace's Guide: Paterson}} Paterson was half a year older than Balfour, and they had attended the same school in Edinburgh.{{sfn|Grace's Guide: Balfour}}{{sfn|Grace's Guide: Paterson}} Balfour brought with him from Scotland the lamp equipment he had designed for the proposed lighthouses at Cape Saunders and Taiaroa Head.{{sfn|Aspden}} Balfour is described as having had "enormous energy", and within half a year, he had commenced a large number of projects.{{sfn|Aspden}} His contract with the provincial council was terminated at the end of 1866 (it is not clear whether this was Balfour's choice), and he then became colonial marine engineer on appointment by the government in Wellington.{{sfn|Grace's Guide: Balfour}}{{sfn|Aspden}} Death Balfour's friend Paterson drowned in mid-December 1869 when his coach overturned while crossing the Kakanui River. Upon hearing of his friend's death, Balfour made immediate arrangements to travel to his funeral.{{sfn|Southern Cross drownings|1869|p=3}} On 19 December 1869, eight passengers transferred by whale boat from Timaru Harbour during heavy sea to the SS Maori, which was anchored some distance offshore. The whale boat got into trouble, but the passengers could be transferred into a life boat sent by the SS Maori. A wave washed the lifeboat against the SS Maori, and caused it to overturn. Two of the passengers drowned including Balfour.{{sfn|The Press drowning|1869|p=2}} Balfour's name is listed on the wall of the family vault in Colinton. Balfour was a leading engineer, and it was expected that he would eventually have succeeded John Blackett as Engineer-in-Chief of the Public Works Department.{{sfn|Aspden}} List of projects Below is a list of lighthouses either designed by Balfour, or designed and supervised. Some of these are registered by Heritage New Zealand (formerly known as the New Zealand Historic Places Trust).{{sfn|Grace's Guide: Balfour}}{{sfn|Aspden}} | Photo | Name of lighthouse | Location | Coordinates | Description | Date lit | Heritage registration |
|---|
| Taiaroa Head Lighthouse | Taiaroa Head, Otago Peninsula | 45|46|25.89|S|170|43|44.43|E|display=inline}} | Taiaroa Head}} | 2 January 1865 | Category I; number 2220 | | Dog Island Lighthouse | Dog Island in Foveaux Strait | -46.65190|168.4105|display=inline}} | Dog Island}} | 5 August 1865 | Category I; number 395 | | Farewell Spit Lighthouse | Farewell Spit | -40.546064|173.009474|display=inline}} | Farewell Spit}} | 17 June 1870 | Not registered | | Nugget Point Lighthouse | Nugget Point on The Catlins coast | -46.448133|169.816933|display=inline}} | Nugget Point}} | 4 July 1870 | Not registered | | Cape Campbell Lighthouse | Cape Campbell, Marlborough Region | -41.727604|174.275378|display=inline}} | Cape Campbell}} | 1 August 1870 | Not registered | | Ponui Passage Lighthouse | between Ponui Island and Pakihi Island in the Hauraki Gulf | -36.900389|175.182761|display=inline}} | Ponui Passage}} | 1871 | Demolished | | Bean Rock Lighthouse | on a reef at the entrance of Waitemata Harbour | -36.833284|174.831127|display=inline}} | Bean Rock}} | 24 July 1871 | Category I; number 3295 | | Cape Saunders Lighthouse | at Matakitaki Point near Cape Saunders on Otago Peninsula | -45.881022|170.728579|display=inline}} | Cape Saunders}} | 1 January 1880 | Not registered |
Commemoration The name of a small town in Southland originally known as Longridge was changed to Balfour to avoid confusion other New Zealand localities of that name. It is uncertain whether the new name refers to an employee of the Waimea Company who lived locally, or the provincial engineer.{{sfn|Reed|2010|p=39}} When Eleanor Catton started working on her novel The Luminaries, she used the Papers Past website of the National Library of New Zealand to find suitable names for her characters, set during the time of the West Coast Gold Rush (1864–1867). Balfour was active on the West Coast during that time, and it is assumed that Catton adopted his surname for the character of the shipping agent Thomas Balfour, who represents Sagittarius in the Man Booker Prize-winning novel.{{sfn|Mussen|2013}} Notes and references Notes References {{Commons category|James Balfour (engineer)}}Books- {{cite DNB12|wstitle=Balfour, George William|volume=1 |ref={{sfnRef|Lee|1912}} }}
- {{cite book | last = Reed | first = A. W. |authorlink = Alexander Wyclif Reed |title = Place Names of New Zealand |year = 2010 |publisher = Raupo |location = Rosedale, North Shore |isbn = 978-0-14-320410-7 |editor = Peter Dowling |ref = harv}}
- {{cite book | editor-last = Scholefield | editor-first = Guy | editor-link = Guy Scholefield | title = A Dictionary of New Zealand Biography : A–L | volume = I | year = 1940 | publisher = Department of Internal Affairs | location = Wellington | url = http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/files/documents/dnzb-1940/scholefield-dnzb-v1.pdf | accessdate = 6 January 2015 | ref=harv}}
Newspapers- {{cite news | url=http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=ODT18630914.2.5 | title=Port Chalmers | work=Otago Daily Times | date=14 September 1863 | accessdate=6 January 2015 | issue=542 | ref={{sfnRef|Port Chalmers|1863}} }}
- {{cite news | url=http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP18691220.2.10 | title=Sad Accident at Timaru | work=The Press | date=20 December 1869 | accessdate=6 January 2015 | volume=XV | issue=2084 | ref={{sfnRef|The Press drowning|1869}} }}
- {{cite news | title=Fatal Accidents in the South | url=http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=DSC18691224.2.26 | accessdate=6 January 2015 | work=Daily Southern Cross | volume=XXV | issue=3851 | date=24 December 1869 | ref={{sfnRef|Southern Cross drownings|1869}} }}
- {{cite news | url=http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=TS18691229.2.12 | title=The Late Mr Balfour | work=The Star | date=29 December 1869 | accessdate=4 January 2015 | issue=503 | ref={{sfnRef|The Star obituary|1869}} }}
- {{cite news | date=26 March 2013 | first1=Deidre | last1=Mussen | url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/arts/9867720/Cattons-novel-brings-old-family-links-to-life | title=Catton's novel brings old family links to life | work=The Press | accessdate=6 January 2015 | ref={{sfnRef|Mussen|2013}} }}
Websites- {{cite web | last1=Aspden | first1=R J | url=http://www.ipenz.org.nz/heritage/bio-detail.cfm?id=2 | title=Balfour, James Melville | publisher=Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand | accessdate=6 January 2015 | ref={{sfnRef|Aspden}}}}
- {{cite web | last1=Beaglehole | first1=Helen | url=http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/document/6653/james-balfours-notes | title=Lighthouses – A national system | publisher=The Encyclopedia of New Zealand | date=9 July 2013 | accessdate=4 January 2015 | ref=harv}}
- {{cite web | last1=James | first1=Dr. Maureen | url=http://www.tellinghistory.co.uk/content/marie-clothilde-balfour-bibilography | title=Marie Clothilde Balfour – Biography | publisher=Telling History | accessdate=6 January 2015 | ref={{sfnRef|James – Telling History}} }}
- {{cite web | url=http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/James_Melville_Balfour | title=James Melville Balfour | publisher=Grace's Guide | accessdate=6 January 2015 | ref={{sfnRef|Grace's Guide: Balfour}} }}
- {{cite web | url=http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Thomas_Paterson_%281830-1869%29 | title=Thomas Paterson (1830–1869) | publisher=Grace's Guide | accessdate=6 January 2015 | ref={{sfnRef|Grace's Guide: Paterson}} }}
- {{cite web | last1=Phillips | first1=Mark | url=http://www.newzealandlighthouses.com/ | title=New Zealand Lighthouses | accessdate=12 January 2015 | website=newzealandlighthouses.com}}
- {{cite web | url=http://www.newzealandlighthouses.com/bean_rock.htm | title=Bean Rock Lighthouse (1871) | date=30 December 2009 | accessdate=15 January 2015 | ref= {{sfnRef|Bean Rock}} }}
- {{cite web | url=http://www.newzealandlighthouses.com/cape_campbell.htm | title=Cape Campbell (1870) (1905) | date=28 November 2009 | accessdate=11 January 2015 | ref= {{sfnRef|Cape Campbell}} }}
- {{cite web | url=http://www.newzealandlighthouses.com/cape_saunders.htm | title=Cape Saunders (1880) | date= | accessdate=15 January 2015 | ref= {{sfnRef|Cape Saunders}} }}
- {{cite web | url=http://www.newzealandlighthouses.com/dog_island.htm | title=Dog Island (1865) | date=29 December 2009 | accessdate=11 January 2015 | ref= {{sfnRef|Dog Island}} }}
- {{cite web | url=http://www.newzealandlighthouses.com/farewell_spit.htm | title=Farewell Spit (1869) | date=18 June 2011 | accessdate=11 January 2015 | ref= {{sfnRef|Farewell Spit}} }}
- {{cite web | url=http://www.newzealandlighthouses.com/nugget_point.htm | title=Nugget Point (1870) | date= | accessdate=11 January 2015 | ref= {{sfnRef|Nugget Point}} }}
- {{cite web | url=http://www.newzealandlighthouses.com/ponui_passage.htm | title=Ponui Passage (1871) | date=12 December 2009 | accessdate=11 January 2015 | ref= {{sfnRef|Ponui Passage}} }}
- {{cite web | url=http://www.newzealandlighthouses.com/taiaroa_head.htm | title=Taiaroa Head (1865) | date=5 February 2011 | accessdate=11 January 2015 | ref= {{sfnRef|Taiaroa Head}} }}
- {{cite web | last1=Whitehouse | first1=Olwyn | url=http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nzbound/otago1863.htm | title=Shipping News 1863 | publisher=New Zealand Bound | website=rootsweb | accessdate=6 January 2015 | ref={{sfnRef|Whitehouse}} }}
{{authority control}}{{DEFAULTSORT:Balfour, James Melville}} 8 : 1831 births|1869 deaths|New Zealand civil engineers|Marine engineers|People from Edinburgh|Scottish emigrants to New Zealand|People educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh|Alumni of the University of Edinburgh |